N.H. population exceeds Maine, 1st time since 1800

CONCORD, N.H. — New Census Bureau data shows New Hampshire’s population exceeding that of Maine for the first time in 209 years.

Both states have about 1.3 million residents. Estimates released Wednesday put New Hampshire’s population ahead by 6,274 people.

Demographer Kenneth Johnson at the University of New Hampshire says New Hampshire has been growing faster than Maine throughout the decade, gaining 89,000 new residents since 2000 compared to Maine’s 43,000.

Maine also has a much older population and therefor more deaths and fewer births than New Hampshire.

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New Hampshire’s growth rate has slowed recently. Migration from Massachusetts, for example, has declined by 34 percent in the last several years. The report shows Maine lost 1,390 residents from July 1, 2008 to July 1, 2009.